Update on the Ethereum Stack Exchange proposal

The proposal has been trucking along, with the second phase (Commitment) now entered and 44% complete. So far Ethereum has been one of the fastest moving Stack Exchange proposals ever! The main thing we need now are users who have (or are willing to obtain) 200+ rep on at least one Stack Exchange site.

No idea what I'm talking about? The Ethereum Stack Exchange proposal is an attempt to create a quality source of expert answers to all the questions anyone might ever want to ask about Ethereum! Stack Exchange allows anyone to create such a site for free, provided that they have established a large enough community of interested (and committed!) individuals who are ready to use the site and help make it a success. This process has three steps: Definition, Commitment, and Beta. The first phase has already been finished in record time for the Ethereum proposal, and now it needs your help to finish the second phase so we can enter phase three (Beta launch of the site) and start providing valuable help to anyone interested in learning about Ethereum. Here's a basic FAQ about this proposal.

What is a Stack Exchange Site?Stack Exchange is a wide network of expert Q&A sites, including famous sites such as Stack Overflow (for programming), Super User (for computers/IT), and Arqade (for video games). Stack Exchange sites reward users for crafting quality answers (and questions!) that everyone else on the internet can then use as a reference, so that when someone types "how does X work?" or "how do I do Y" into google, they get an actual answer by someone who really knows what they're talking about. The askers and answerers who create this valuable content are rewarded with reputation points and a wide range of gold/silver/bronze badges, which also helps to indicate that a user knows what they're talking about as they collect more and more reputation/badges (especially the gold or silver ones, which are much harder to get). This "gamification" makes the site fun for those who put in a lot of work, because their efforts are recognised and celebrated (plus, points!). Stack Exchange sites have proven incredibly effective at collecting quality, expert answers to every question under the sun, and we think that having a resource like that for Ethereum would be fantastic!

How can I help?During the Commitment phase of a proposal, users sign up to indicate that they will actually use the site, asking and/or answering questions on it. In order for a site beta to be launched, a minimum of 200 people have to be signed up as committers (and we already have 104 right now).

That's it, just clicking a button?Yup. Although it's important to realise the button click is a commitment to come back and actually participate in the site when it does go into beta, so that good questions and answers can be built out to provide a valuable resource, as well as getting a community established that will vote good questions and answers to the top so that they are clearly identified.

What if I want to do more?If you really want to go the extra mile, one of the things that the commitment phase also measures is whether or not committed users have at least 200 reputation on any other Stack Exchange site. By collecting at least 200 reputation (not terribly hard to do) on any Stack Exchange site, you demonstrate that you understand how the sites are supposed to work, which is extremely helpful in getting a new site going. There are a ton of Stack Exchange sites, so just pick one where you're either an expert or just curious and ask/answer away! As long as you follow the site guidelines, such as searching for duplicate questions before you ask one, and sticking to the site's specific guidelines for what is on and off topic, it won't be difficult to get that coveted 200 rep and be a "super plus contributor" to getting the Ethereum Stack Exchange going (you get 50 rep for just verifying your email address). Of the 100 super plus contributors we need for the proposal, we've already gotten 44. All we need are 56 more!

Another way you can go "above and beyond" is by sharing this proposal around with your friends on social networks. We only have so many people in this forum, and there are lots more people out there who have questions about Ethereum that they'd love to read quality answers to. Go get 'em!

What if I'm not an expert?That's fine! Asking the questions is considered just as important as answering them on a Stack Exchange site. If you don't know any of the answers, you are the perfect person to use this site, because you can ask anything you've ever wanted to about Ethereum and get a clear, concise, expert answer from someone who knows! You're also considered a valuable contributor on any Stack Exchange site, because good questions are at least half of the equation. So by not knowing about a topic, you could actually be a super plus contributor if you wanted to be (see previous question).

What are we waiting for?I don't know, you're the one who read all the way to the end instead of just clicking the link at the top for Immediate ActionTM.